capital error, which was the ruin of his
enterprise. He had always, while in England, blamed the conduct of
former commanders, who artfully protracted the war, who harassed
their troops in small enterprises, and who, by agreeing to truces and
temporary pacifications with the rebels, had given them leisure to
recruit their broken forces.[**] In conformity to these views, he had
ever insisted upon leading his forces immediately into Ulster against
Tyrone, the chief enemy; and his instructions had been drawn agreeably
to these his declared resolutions. But the Irish counsellors persuaded
him that the season was too early for the enterprise, and that as the
morasses, in which the northern Irish usually sheltered themselves,
would not as yet be passable to the English forces, it would be better
to employ the present time in an expedition into Munster. Their secret
reason for this advice was, that many of them possessed estates in
that province, and were desirous to have the enemy dislodged from their
neighborhood;[***] but the same selfish spirit which had induced them to
give this counsel, made them soon after disown it, when they found the
bad consequences with which it was attended.[****]

* Birch's Memoirs, vol. ii p. 421, 451.

** Birch's Memoirs, vol. ii. p. 431. Bacon, vol. iv. 512.

*** Birch's Memoirs, vol. ii. p. 448.

**** Winwood, vol. i. p. 140.

Essex obliged all the rebels of Munster either to submit or to fly into
the neighboring provinces: but as the Irish, from the greatness of the
queen's preparations, had concluded that she intended to reduce them to
total subjection, or even utterly to exterminate them, they considered
their defence as a common cause; and the English forces were no sooner
withdrawn, than the inhabitants of Munster relapsed into rebellion,
and renewed their confederacy with their other countrymen. The army,
meanwhile, by the fatigue of long and tedious marches, and by the
influence of the climate, was become sickly; and on its return to
Dublin, about the middle of July, was surprisingly diminished in number.
The courage of the soldiers was even much abated: for though they had
prevailed in some lesser enterprises against Lord Cahir and others, yet
had they sometimes met with more stout resistance than they expected
from the Irish, whom they were wont to despise; and as they were raw
troops and unexperienced, a considerable body of them had been put to
flight at th